Record sheet feed mechanism



March 20,1934. M MAUL 1,951,517

RECORD SHEET FEED MECHANISM Filed Aug. 18, 1950 luv" Patented Mar. 20, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Application August 18,

1930, Serial No. 476,014

In Germany September 9, 1929 13 Claims.

In various kinds of typeprinting apparatus such as in calculating typewriters, printing calculating and adding machines as well as in bookkeeping machines and particularly in record card controlled printing tabulating machines a continuous paper sheet is used as record sheet containing linewise entries and receiving a linewise feed by means of a feeding mechanism. In printing tabulating machines, which may be considered as a typical example of the application of the present invention, during each cycle a number of adjacent typebars are adjusted in printing position and all types adjusted in one line are printed simultaneously upon the record sheet, whereupon the paper feeding platen is automatically shifted for one step to feed the next line of the sheet in printing position. These operations will be repeated so that finally a continuous record sheet is obtained having lines of entries printed below each other. Though the present invention is by no means restricted to tabulating machines, it shall be described in connection with such a machine as in this instance the purpose and practical advantages of the invention will be clearly seen.

When using a continuous paper sheet as record sheet it is necessary to'sever the sheet afterwards into individual record lists, as for instance in the banking business into statements of account for the various customers. For a number of reasons it may be desirable, and in certain cases it may be even necessary that all statements of account be of the same standard length. These 1 various statements, however, contain (depending 35 upon the number of business transactions) different numbers of recorded lines and therefore an' additional feed must be imparted to each record list before the first item of the next statement of account may be printed, and this feed must be of such a length for each list that lists of standard length will be obtained for the various statements of account. This additional feed may be preferably called complementary additional feed since said feed completes the regu lar linewise feed depending upon the number of recorded lines to a certain predetermined total feed.

In certain other cases, in which obtaining of lists of standard length is not intended, it may be desirable to provide after each group of recorded data or entries a blank space between the last item of said group and the total or between the total of the preceding group and the first item of the following group, and said blank space shall amount in all groups to the same length.

For this purpose an additional feed must be imparted to the record sheet after printing of each group of entries or after total printing and said feed must amount in each case to the same length and therefore said feed may be called constant additional feed.

Devices for performing the above mentioned kinds of additional feeds are generally known. There are known devices adapted to cause a complementary additional feeding operation and there are other known devices adapted to cause a constant additional feeding operation after each group of entries. Of course, it would also be possible to provide on the same machine a known device for a complementary additional feed and a known device for a constantadditional feed. Each of said known devices would then be provided with determining or controlling means, adapted to determine in the one instance the standard length of the lists and in the other instance the length or extent of the constant additional feeding operation. It is also possible with said devices to select or adjust the length of the additional feed, i. e. to adjust in the first mentioned instance the standard length of the lists or to adjust in the device for constant additional feed the extent of the latter at the will of the operator; this may be done for instance by a ratchet bar cooperating with the paper feeding platen, the effective length of said bar being adjustable; or by selection-of any of various ratios between the platen and the means determining the additional feed.

Now, according to the present invention, the same means for determining or controlling the extent of the feeding operation may be selectively used for determining either upon the preparation of lists of standard length. the standard length of said lists or for determining the length of the constant additional feeding operation after a number of linewise entries if blank spaces of equal length are to be provided between the various groups of entries.

The standard length of the lists or the length of the constant additional feeding operation is preferably determined by means adjustable to diiferent feeding lengths in which case the practical advantages of theselective application of said determining means for different kinds of additional feed may be clearly seen since it becomes then for instance possible to adjust on a single graduation belonging to said determining means, a certain number of lines and to select by some other means if said number of lines shall determine the standard length of lists or a constant additional feed. If the adjustment of the feeding length is effected by changing or shifting of gears in order to change the ratio (as has been for instance suggested in a known device for complementary additional feed) gears of varying ratio may be used in different manners of operation with different lengths of standard lists or constant additional feed; however, according to the present invention they may selectively operate as common determining means. Though the adjustability of the determining means to various lengths of feed permits a wide practical application of the invention, said adjustability is not essential for the invention itself and therefore the invention will be described in connection with determining means designed for asingle predetermined standard length of lists or a corresponding constant additional feed.

According to the invention the means determining the food may be selectively brought in operative connection either from the beginning of a series of entries with the feed platen so that said means are moved during the regular linewise recording operations and that finally only remaining length is to be fed, i. e. the aforesaid complementary additional feed must become eiiective, or either in such a way that said determining means remain normally in homeposition in which they are operatively connected to the platen only upon initiation of the cornplernentaiy feed action and moved in unison with said feed, to become effective for a length corresponding to their respective adjustment, i. e. for a constant additional feed, whereupon said means are disengaged and remain in their home position until the next constant additional feed is initiated. Since said determining means automatically interrupt the additional feed upon reaching the home position, in the case of adjustment to constant additional feed said means would not respond upon releasing. Therefore, according to the present invention, means are provided. to insure response of said determining means upon adjustment to constant additional feed, however permitting said means to autoinatically interrupt the additional feed upon reaching of the home position.

According to the foregoing explanations it is therefore the main object of the present invention to obtain either lists of standard length or a constant blank space between difierent groups of entries and to provide common determining or controlling means adapted to selectively determine the standard length of the lists or the extent of the constant additional feeding operation.

Another object of the invention is to provide in a record sheet feeding mechanism common controlling means selectively adjustable to control either the feed for obtaining lists of stand.- ard length or for obtaining a constant additional reed.

Another object of the invention is to provide electrical determining or controlling means for a record sheet feeding mechanism for the before mentioned purpose.

A further object of the invention is to provide releasing or initiating means for said sheet feed determining or controlling means, said initiating means being controllable either manually or automatically. I

Still another object of the invention is to provide coupling means between the printing platen and the feed controlling means, said coupling means being selectively adjustable to cause difsemen a type printing apparatus as for instance of the printing device of a tabulating machine in connection with feed determining or controlling means according to the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a detail view and shows diagrammatically the regular linewise shifting means for the paper platen.

In Fig. l the type box of the tabulating machine is indicated at 2. Within said box the type bars are positioned adjacent each other and are reciprocated during each cycle and adjusted in printing position, and at the end of each cycle all type, adjusted in one line, are impelled simultaneously towards the record sheet 3 to effect the corresponding prints thereupon. The sheetis shifted in a generally known way by means of a feed. roller platen l; the shaft 4 of said platen is rotatably mounted in side cas ings of the type box 2, the drawing showing only one of said casings 5. A ratchet wheel 6 is fast upon the shaft 4 and is actuated by a pawl mechanism being under the control of the print-- ing device and is shifted after printing of each line for one step to feed the next line of the sheet 3 in printing position. This linewise shifting mechanism is shown diagrammatically in Fig/2. A pawl l cooperates with the ratchet wheel 6 to secure the shaft 3 in correct position. The shift pawl it is pivotally mounted upon a lever 10 pivoted at 9 and being normally drawn by the spring ll against the stop 12. A spring 13 connects the one end of pawl 8 to the lever 10 to keep said. pawl in engagement with the ratchet wheel 6. The bar 15, being provided with a projection 14, is in operative connection with the printing device and is reciprocated once during each printing cycle. Upon upward movement, the projection 14 encounters the right hand end of lever 10 and rocks the same counterclockwise, so that pawl 8 clicks behind the next lower tooth or? ratchet wheel 6. After the printing operation has taken place the bar 15 moves downwardly, thereby permitting spring 11 to rock the lever 10 in clockwise direction and to shift the ratchet wheel 6 by means of pawl 8 for one step. "lire shaft 4 (Fig. 1) is provided in the usual way with a hand wheel 16. In addition thereto the shaft carries a toothed wheel 1''! en.- gaging a gear 18 which in turn engages a driving gear 19. On the casing 5 is fastened a bracket 20 having a bearing 21 for a shaft 22 as well as a bearing 23 for another shaft 24. Upon an arm 25 of the bracket are two brushes 2s and 27 insulatingly mounted, cooperating with a contact disk 28 being fas upon the shaft 24. The contact disk 28 is provided with a metal ring 29, said ring being interrupted on its circurnference by a cross insulating piece 83. In the home position of disk 28 the cross insulation 33 lies below the brushes 26, 27 thereby electrically interrupting the same. arrangement 31, provided in the bearing 23, the correct adjustment of the disk 28 in the afore- By a resilient ball said home position is insured since said ball coacts with a corresponding cavity of shaft 24. The flanges 32 and 30 prevent longitudinal movement of shaft 24 in-the bearing 23. The gear 19 is fast upon the shaft 22 mounted in bearing 21 and carrying on its left end a clutch 33 and a bevel gear 34. Opposite the clutch 33 is provided a clutch element 36 having a bevel gear 35. This clutch element has a groove 3'7 in which engages the bifurcated end 38 of a bell crank lever 39,40, pivoted at 41. The coupling element 35, 86 is slidingly arranged upon the continuously rotating shaft 42; however it rotates with said shaft due to the key 43. The shaft 42 being mounted in bearing 44, is provided withinthe type box with a toothed wheel 45 being driven by a continuously rotating printing or accumulation shaft 46 by means of a gear 47, the ratio being such that a fraction of one revolution of shaft 46 is sufficient to cause one complete revolution of shaft 42.

The shaft 24 is provided on the left hand end with a key 48. Upon the shaft is a bevel gear 49, 50 slidingly arranged. The bifurcated end of an arm 52 passes into a groove 51 of said bevel gear, said arm being slidingly arranged upon the projection 53 of the bracket 20 and fixable upon said arm. The adjustment may be effected by means of a yieldingly mounted fixing pin 54 in one position (as in Fig. 1) in such a way that the double bevel gear is normally disengaged from the bevel gear 85, but comes into engagement with the bevel gear 35 upon movement of the clutch element 35, 36 to the right, whereupon the gear 49, 50 will rotate with the gear 35. 'In the other position (shown in dotted lines) of the double bevel gear the wheel 50 is normally permanently in engagement with the bevel gear34. Upon the arm 55 of the hanging bracket 20 is insulatingly provided a spring plate contact 56 which is closed in the one position of the double bevel gear 49, 50 as shown in the drawing. If, however, said double bevel gear is moved to the right hand position, an insulating stop 5'7 encounters the right hand contact spring and opens the contact 56. A spring 58 fastened to the arm 55 keeps normally the bell crank lever 39, ,40

in engagement with the lower end 59 of the bracket, so that the coupling element 35, 36 will freely rotate if in the position as illustrated in the drawing. The arm 40 forming the armature of a magnet 60, is provided with an insulatingly arranged contact plate 61 bridging the contacts 62, 63 upon energization f the magnet. The circuits serving for the control of the magnet include in addition to the current source 65, a resistance 64 as well as four pairs of contacts 66, 68 and 67, 69. Contacts 66, 68and 6'7, 69 respectively are arranged insulatingly from each other; however, they are closed only in pairs, that is to say either contacts 66 and 68 or contacts 6'7 and 69 are closed simultaneously. If the additional feed shall be effected, either the key '70 is depressed by the operator and thereby the contacts 66, 68 will be closed or the contacts 67, 69 may be closed by lever '72 being under the control of any automatic means of the machine such as for instance under the control of magnet '71.

The operation of the above described device is as follows:

If a constant additional feed shall be effected after printing of any number of lines, the double bevel gear 49, 50 is adjusted to the position shown in the drawing. During a series of regular cycles the linewise entries are then made upon the record sheet and said sheet is shifted after each cycle for one step by means of the pawl mechanism (illustrated in Fig. 2) and the printing platen.

After a certain number of lines has been printed, the constant additional feed may be effected either manually by actuation of key '70 or in an automatic way by energization of magnet '71. Since both releasing means, i. e. the key '70 and the magnet '71 control parallelly arranged current circuits, it is immaterial which means is actuated and in the following specification it is therefore assumed, that the key '70 will be depressed. When said key is depressed, at first the contact 66 and then the contact 68 will be closed. Therefore a current will flow from the right side of the current source over line '73 which then (since in the present case the brushes 26, 27 are.

interrupted by the cross insulation 83 now being in home position) will flow over line '75 and the contact 56 (being permanently closed upon adjustment for constant additional feed) then over line '76, contact 66, line '77, line '78, line '79 and contact 68, being closed upon depression of ,key '70, then over line 80 through the magnet 60 and the resistance 64 back to the current source; The magnet will therefore be energized, thereby moving the coupling element 35, 86 upon the shaft 42 to the right and engaging the continuously rotating clutch 36 with the clutch 33 and causing shifting of the paper feed platen 1 by means of the above mentioned gearing to complete .the additional feed. 'Since upon energization of magnet 60 the contact pieces 62, 63 are bridged by the plate 61, the circuit of clutch magnet 60 will be maintained though key has returned to its home position and the contacts 66, 68 have been opened in the meantime. This maintaining is permitted by the contact ring 29 which in the meantimehas been turned from its home position, since upon movement of bevel gear 35 to the right the double bevel gear 49 has been immediately engaged and moved from its position; therefore in the very next moment after actuation of key '70 the contact disk 28 will have been slightly turned and the cross insulation 83 has been moved away from the brushes 26, 2'7, thereby electrically connecting the same by the contact ring 29. In this moment, i. e. if the key '70 returns to home position and the corresponding contacts are open, the clutch magnet 68 will remain energized over the following stick circuit: from the right hand side of current source 65 over line '73, line '74, brush 2'7, contact ring 29, brush 26, line 81, line '78, contact piece 63, contact plate 61, contact piece 62, magnet 60, resistance 64 and back to the left hand side of the current source. The magnet, therefore, keeps the clutches 36, 33 on the one hand and the clutches 35, 49 on the other hand in engagement, thereby causing movement of the paper platen and in unison therewith also movement of the contact disk 28. If the contact disk 28 has completed one complete revolution, the cross insulation 83 will again reach the brushes 26, 2'7 and the circuit of the clutch magnet 60, including said brushes, will be interrupted; thereby under the influence of spring 38 the bell crank lever 39. 40 will be rocked in counter-clockwise direction, and the clutches 35, 49 and 36, 33 respectively will be disengaged. The clutch element 35, 36 is then free to rotate while the bevel gear 49, 50 and contact disk 28 are ever.

held in their home position by means of the resiliently arranged adjustment device 31.

It will be clearly seen from the foregoing specification that the additional feed impar'tedto the -.in the illustrated adjusting position and if, after a certain number of linewise entries, the key 70 is actuated or the magnet 71 is energized. It is also obvious from the drawing, that upon closure of contact 67, 69 consequently to energization of magnet 71 the same operations will take place as upon actuation of key 70.

If now the contact disk 28 shall control obtaining of lists of standard length within the limits of the device, and therefore the complementary additional feed depending upon the number of recorded lines shall be controlled by said disk, the bevel gear 49, 50 is moved upon the shaft 24 to the right by means of the, bifurcated arm 52 having an adjustment block which may be moved upon the arm 53 to the right into the position shown in Fig. 1 in dotted lines, in which position the bevel gear 50 is permanently in engagement with bevel gear 34. In this position the insulating piece 57 encounters the right hand spring of the plate spring contact 56, thereby permanently opening said contact. If a certain number of lines belonging to one group is being printed upon the record sheet 3, after printing of each line the platen will be shifted by means of the mechanism shown in Fig. 2 for one step in each printing operation. Due to the gear connection between the platen shaft 4 and the bevel gear 34 the bevel,

gear 50 will also have been moved during the regular linewise feed in unison with the linewise recording operations so that the contact disk 28 has been already moved at the end of a number of recording operations for an amount corresponding to the number of printed lines; since during said operations the contact disk has been turned from its home position, the brushes 26, 27 will be electrically connected by the contact ring 29 this being, however, of no consequence since the circuit of the clutch magnet 60 is still open. If, however after a certain number of printing operations the complementary additional feed shall be effected to obtain for the preceding group just the same as for-all other groups a list of a. certain predetermined standard length, then either the magnet '11 must be energized or the key must be depressed. Upon depression of key 70 the contacts 66 and 68 will be closed. Since upon adjustment for complementary additional feed the contact 56 is interrupted and therefore the lines 76, are ineffective, closure of contact 66 upon depression of key '70 is of no influence whatso- However from the right hand side of current source 65 a circuit will be closed over line 73, line 74, brush 27, contact ring 29, brush 26, line 81 over contact 68; said circuit then leading over line 80, clutch magnet 60 and resistance 64 back to the left hand side of the current source. After energization the clutch magnet 60 establishes its own stick circuit, the current flowing after opening of contact 68 over contact piece 62, contact plate 61, contact piece 63, line 78 and over the above mentioned lines 81, '74 and '73.

The magnet 60, now being energized will, of course, effect the complementary additional feed by means of clutches 36, 33, and in unison therewith the contact disk 28 will be rotated since the bevel gear 50 is in engagement with bevel gear 34. Ifthe contact disk 28 reaches again its home position, the cross insulation 88 will interrupt the electrical connection between the brushes 26, 27, thereby deenergizing the clutch magnet 60 and disengaging under the influence of spring 58 the clutches 36, 33.

It will be seen, that in the above case the contact disk 28 controls the engagement between the clutches 36, 33 according to the difference between the predetermined standard length of' the lists and the. number of linewise entries, so that upon adjustment of the bevel gear 49, 50 into the right position, always lists of standard length will be obtained.

Ashas been already mentioned, the adjustability of the controlling means to different lengths of lists or different lengths of constant additional feed has been omitted in the present embodiment of the invention chiefly for reasons of simplicity. In the present case, however, an adjustable contact disk could be provided or the gear connection 17, 18, 19 could be made interchangeable or shiftable to different ratios, so that by means of,

the present invention lists of standard length (the standard length being adjustable) or a constant additional feed (the constant length of said feed being adjustable) could be easily obtained at the will of the operator.

While I have shown and described one preferred embodiment of the invention it will be understood that many alterations, substitutions and omissions may be made by those skilled in the art and that the invention is by no means limited to the embodiment described herein.

What I claim is:

1. In a type printing apparatus, means for feeding the record sheet, a line spacing mechanism operatively connected to said feeding means, means also operatively connected to said feeding means for imparting to the record sheet either a complementary or a constant additional feeding operation subsequently to the actuation of said line spacing mechanism, common means for determining either additional feeding operation, and means for selectively connecting said common determining means operatively to said feeding means from the actuation of the line spacing mechanism or from the actuation of said means for effecting an additional feeding operation.

2. In a type printing apparatus, means for feeding the record sheet, a line spacing mechanism operatively connected to said feeding means,

' means also operatively connected to said feeding means for imparting to the record sheet either a complementary or a constant additional feeding operation subsequently to the actuation of said line spacing mechanism, common means for determining either one of said additional feeding operations, and selective means to operatively connect said common determining means with the record sheet feeding means from the begin- .and selective means to subtract a preceding move ment of the feeding means from the feeding lengthy determined by said common determining means or to disregard a preceding movement of the feeding means.

. 4. In a type printing apparatus, means for feeding a record sheet, a line spacing mechanism operatively connected to said feeding means, and driving means for imparting an additional feeding operation to said feeding means, said driving means being under the control of common means determining either the standard length of lists or of a constant blank space obtained in additional feeding operations, and means for adjusting said common determining means so as to become operative together with the line spacing mechanism and the subsequent additional feeding operation or together with the additional feeding operation only.

5. In a type printing apparatus, means for feeding a record sheet, a line spacing mechanism operatively connected to said feeding means, driving means engageable to said feeding means for imparting an additional feeding operation, and common determining means cooperating with said feeding and said driving means to determine either a complementary or a constant additional feeding operation, and means to selectively engage said common determining means constantly with the record sheet feeding means or to engage salid determining means with said sheet feeding means only upon and simultaneously with the operation of the driving means.

@6. In a type printing apparatus, means for feedi g the record sheet, a line spacing mechanism 0 eratively connected to said feeding means, means also operatively connected to said feeding m ans for imparting to the record sheet either a complementary or a constant additional feeding operation subsequently to the actuation of s id linespacing mechanism, common means for d termining the extent of the feeding movement 0 said feeding means upon complementary or c nstant additional feeding operation, said common determining means being selectively operable to determine the movement of said feeding means either from the actuation of the line spacing mechanism 'and of said means for effecting an additional feeding operation, or from the actu ation of said means for effecting an additional feeding operation only.

'7. In a type printing apparatus, means for feeding a record sheet, a line spacing mechanism operatively connected to said feeding means, means for imparting to said feeding means after an arbitrary number of linewise entries 9. complementary additional feeding operation for the preparation of lists of standard length or a constant additional feeding operation to produce blank spaces of equal length between the various groups of entries, common means for determining either the standard length of said lists or the length of said equal blank spaces, and means for rendering said common determining means selectively operable for any one of both manners of additional feeding operations.

8. In a type printing apparatus, means for feeding a record sheet, a line spacing mechanism operatively connected to said feeding means, means for imparting to said feeding means after an arbitrary number of linewise entries a complementary additional feeding operation for the preparation of lists of standard length or a constant additional feeding operation to produce blank spaces of equal length between the various groups of entries, common electrical means for determining either the standard length of said lists or the length of said equal blank spaces, and means for rendering said common electrical determining means selectively operable for any one of both manners of additional feeding operations.

9. In a type printing apparatus, means for feeding a record sheet, a line spacing mechanism operatively connected to said feeding means, means for imparting to said feeding means after an arbitrary number of linewise entries a complementary additional feeding operation for the preparation of lists of standard length or a constant additional feeding operation to produce blank spaces of equal length between various groups of entries, common means for determining either the standard length of said lists or the length of said equal blank spaces, means for rendering said common determining means selectively operable for any one of both manners of additional feeding operations, and common means for initiating any one ofsaid additional an arbitrary number of linewise entries a com-- plementary additional feeding operation for the preparation of lists of standard length or a constant additional feeding operation to produce blank spaces of equal length between the various groups of entries, common rotatable means for determining either the standard length of said lists or the length of said equal blank spaces, and means for selectively bringing said common rotatable determining means in operative connection with said feeding means either from the beginning of said linewise entries or upon initiation of the additional feeding operation only.

12. A type printing apparatus as specified in claim 11 wherein said means for operatively connecting said common rotatable determining means with said feeding means comprise a clutch wheel actuating said determining means, said clutch wheel being adjustable into any one of two adjusting positions and being in the one position always in operative connection with the feeding means while in the other position it comes in.

operative connection with said means for imparting an additional feeding operation upon initiation of such additional feeding operation.

13. A type printing apparatus as specified in claim 11 wherein said common rotatable determining means comprise a contact disk adapted to control said means for imparting an additional feeding operation.

MICHAEL MAUL. 

